PALESTINE CAN ABSORB ONLY A LIMITED NUMBER OF GERMAN JEWS AND THE FUTURE OF GERMAN-JEWISH EMIGRATION DEPENDS LARGELY ON SETTLEMENT OF UNDEVELOPED OVERSEAS COUNTRIES, THE THIRTY-SIXTH ANNUAL CONFERENCE OF THE HILFSVEREIN DER JUDEN IN DEUTSCHLAND WAS TOLD TODAY BY MAX WARBURG, PRESIDENT.

MR. WARBURG REVEALED THAT WHILE SINCE 1933 A THIRD OF THE GERMAN JEWISH EMIGRANTS HAD GONE TO PALESTINE, DURING THE CURRENT YEAR ONLY A FIFTH AND POSSIBLY ONLY A SIXTH OF THEM WILL HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SETTLE THERE. HE DECLARED THE ATTEMPT TO SETTLE GERMAN JEWS IN EUROPEAN COUNTRIES HAD FAILED.

DR. MARK WISCHNITZER, DIRECTOR OF THE HILFSVEREIN, ALSO EMPHASIZED THAT ONLY IN SPARSELY SETTLED AND UNDEVELOPED COUNTRIES LAY THE CHIEF POSSIBILITY FOR FUTURE GERMAN-JEWISH EMIGRATION. HE POINTED OUT, HOWEVER, THAT EMIGRATION OF GERMAN JEWS TO THE UNITED STATES HAS INCREASED.

THE HILFSVEREIN, DR. WISCHNITZER DISCLOSED, ASSISTED 5,543 JEWS TO EMIGRATE FROM GERMANY DURING 1936. OF THIS NUMBER, 4,806 EMIGRATED OVERSEAS, THE REMAINDER GOING TO EUROPEAN COUNTRIES TO TRAIN IN CENTERS MAINTAINED FOR PERSONS DESIRING TO SETTLE IN PALESTINE. DURING THE FIRST SIX MONTHS OF 1937, HE SAID, THE HILFSVEREIN AIDED 2,614 JEWS TO LEAVE GERMANY. AN ESTIMATED 40,000 HAVE BEEN SIMILARLY HELPED DURING THE LAST FIVE YEARS, HE REPORTED.

DR. WISCHNITZER PAID TRIBUTE TO THE UNITED STATES AND TO GERMAN-JEWISH CHILDRENS’ COMMITTEES FOR HELPING 370 GERMAN-JEWISH CHILDREN SETTLE IN AMERICA. HE ALSO WARMLY PRAISED THE JOINT DISTRIBUTION COMMITTEE, THE COUNCIL FOR GERMAN JEWRY, THE JEWISH COLONIZATION ASSOCIATION AND OTHER GROUPS FOR THEIR ASSISTANCE.

THE CONFERENCE WAS INFORMED THAT OF THE 1936 BUDGET OF 1,973,000 MARKS, EMIGRANT AID CONSUMED 1,549,000 MARKS.